Dense Fog To Slow Morning Commuters

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Make sure to allow extra time and slow things down for the Monday morning commute to work and school. Dense fog is already beginning to settle in across West Michigan and will continue to thicken as we head through the overnight hours into Monday morning. Perfect visibilities are traditionally on the order of about 10 miles. Many locations have dropped off below three miles and air temperatures have cooled to around 40 degrees. When the air temp cools to the dew point temperature, we get 100 percent relative humidity. That means the air is fully saturated with moisture and cannot hold anymore. The result is the moisture begins to condense out into small water droplets and form clouds at/near the surface. Simply put…it’s fog!

We have a very good set up for dense fog due to the steady to moderate rain we experienced Saturday night into Sunday morning. Areas north of Grand Rapids picked up between one and two inches, while most other locations had between .25″ and .50″. That moisture sitting on the ground, coupled with clearing skies, radiational cooling, and falling temperatures are setting the stage for the possibility of school delays.

The National Weather Service has posted a DENSE FOG ADVISORY overnight and through most of Monday morning for our entire FOX 17 viewing area. This means visibilities will frequently be reduced to less than one-quarter mile. The fact that the wind will be light is also conducive to fog formation and the burning off or lifting of it will be very slow. Again…make sure to slow things down, especially on the highways where drivers have a tendency to move along at speeds at 60 or better.

You can click here to view hourly observations (including visibilities) across the entire state.Click here for the complete West Michigan forecast, and don’t forget to get all the details on news, weather, and sports beginning at 5:00 AM Monday morning on FOX 17.